'Tangled' is a return to princess-ly roots for Disney Animation

It's entirely fitting that with the "Rapunzel"-inspired romp "Tangled" -- Disney's 50th feature-length animated film released into theaters -- the House of Mouse lets down its hair and gets back to its roots.

Oh, it's dabbled in princess stories during the past few decades -- "The Princess and the Frog," "Pocahontas," "Aladdin" -- but its most recent full-on, ripped-from-the-classics fairy tale came with 1991's "Beauty and the Beast" and 1989's "The Little Mermaid." Even more surprising, given their princess pedigree: To find the one they did before that, you'd have to go all the way back to 1959's "Sleeping Beauty."

With the far more modern "Tangled," Disney marries old-school, break-out-in-song storytelling with decidedly current technology such as computer animation and 3-D. The result is something less than a masterpiece, but much closer to it than some of the other recent entries in the Disney catalog. (Yes, you, "Chicken Little" and "Treasure Planet.")

All the shiny, spiffy artistry aside -- and there is plenty of that; this really is a nice-looking cartoon, if nothing else -- the beating heart of the film is the nicely updated version of the familiar, hair-raising (and lowering) tale popularized by the Brothers Grimm. As has become Disney's habit, the story has been tweaked to make it a dash less, uh, medieval -- gone is that whole bit about the prince being blinded by thorns -- but the basic setup is the same.

A girl named Rapunzel, voiced by Mandy Moore, is locked away in a tower by a witch named Gothel (Donna Murphy), who is determined not to share with the rest of the world the girl's magical secret.

The roguish Flynn crosses sabers with Maximus the horse in a scene from Disney's animated adventure 'Tangled.'

One day, when the witch is away, a dashing young rogue named Flynn Rider (Zachary Levi, of "Chuck"), fleeing a band of the king's lawmen, stumbles upon the tower and climbs inside to give the heat a chance to die down. One admirably executed bit of blackmail later, he's reluctantly agreeing to escort the sheltered Rapunzel to a nearby village so she can see up-close the annual release of floating lanterns into the sky that always takes her breath away -- and that always happens to occur each year on her birthday.

Cue the adventure, cue the pursuit, cue the romance.

Even though the cast's names are less than household stature -- unusual in this age when animation houses seem determined to cram as many A-listers into their voice casts as possible -- the performances are a big reason why "Tangled" works so well. Moore's button-cute Rapunzel is a barefoot, frying pan-wielding girly-girl reminiscent of Amy Adams' flighty Giselle from 2008's "Enchanted." Levi's roguish Flynn comes off as an exaggerated, narcissistic version of the rascally Tory Belleci from TV's "Mythbusters."

Bottom line: "Tangled" works. Peppered with humor, adventure and a little bit of romance -- and despite the hit-or-miss Alan Menken songs, which you know are going to be pushed for Oscar consideration -- it represents Disney animation at its best.

Yes, it's missing the emotional resonance that has become the trademark of sister studio Pixar, but it still boasts a fun, warm spirit and a deep-seated charm.

It's also, without question, the family movie to see this Thanksgiving.

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TANGLED3 stars, out of 4

Snapshot: An animated comedic adventure, based on the classic "Rapunzel" tale, about a long-haired girl locked away in a tower and the prince who comes to her rescue.

What works: The updated version of the familiar tale strikes a nice balance between humor, adventure and romance, making it a movie that will appeal to the whole family.

What doesn't: Emotionally, it's a touch on the slight side, and Alan Menken's songs -- which you just know are going to be pushed for Oscar consideration -- are hit or miss.